WRC – Ogier and Volkswagen put on a show in Spain

Volkswagen Motorsport took the Manufacturers' title in style Rally of Spain since Sébastien Ogier and Jari-Matti Latvala signed a double in front of the Citroën of Mikko Hirvonen who gained a position in the last kilometers following the retirement of Dani Sordo. Andreas Mikkelsen also stood out on gravel after going through the Rally 2 box. In the end, 13 special stages out of the 15 contested were won by a Polo R WRC (seven out of nine special stages on asphalt and the six courses on gravel). Since the start of the season, the Wolfsburg manufacturer has won 132 stage wins on 215 courses, representing a success rate of 61,4% against Citroën Racing and M-Sport.

Sébastien Ogier and Julien Ingrassia have won 101 between them since the start of the season. This 15th WRC success won by the world champion crew was snatched at the cost of a fantastic comeback where the French took back more than a minute at the head of the race after losing time in the second stage following a puncture. This ascent was achieved despite poor visibility on the first pass due to the dust raised by the first cars. “What an incredible rally, what a fantastic season! », exclaimed the Volkswagen driver. “Our team deserved this Manufacturers’ title and I am delighted that Julien and I achieved this victory in Spain. I promised before leaving that I would try everything and it worked. I must say that the last morning was extremely complicated. Driving in this dust was like being in a fog. We had no visibility. At times we had to take our foot off the gas in sectors at full speed because we could see absolutely nothing. »

His teammate Jari-Matti Latvala was unable to fight to the finish line against his teammate. The Finn was worried about his Polo R WRC after a fire broke out a few kilometers from delivery. “I’m absolutely delighted for the team. The Polo R WRC is a true world champion car. Although we encountered some technical problems at the end of the day, we were able to reach the finish to deliver the team's first ever WRC double. I would have liked to fight until the end for victory with Sébastien Ogier because we were in a balanced duel without having team instructions. I remain satisfied with this second place which gives me confidence for Wales Rally GB in Wales, which is undoubtedly one of my favorite events. I can not wait to be there. » And we can understand it since he won there during the last two editions when he was still at the wheel of the Fiesta RS WRC.

Discover the analysis of the Rally of Spain carried out by our special correspondents in issue 1933 of AUTOhebdo, available from tomorrow in digital version on all platforms, and from Wednesday on newsstands.